Woman, 75, dies Wednesday evening after being hit by car near Bingo hall

Katherine rosenberg/caller-times
Corpus Christi police Officer Tony Gonzalez (center) speaks with relatives of the woman who died after being struck by a car Wednesday night near the intersection of Ayers Street and Roosevelt Drive.

Katherine rosenberg/caller-times
Crash investigators talk in the middle of Ayers Street, which was blocked off Wednesday evening after a 75-year-old woman was fatally struck by a vehicle.

Police believe the woman, whose name was not released, was either walking to or from the Arcadia Shopping Center's Bingo hall and likely lives in a nearby neighborhood.

Police spokesman Senior Officer Kirk Stowers said a 51-year-old man was the sole occupant of the 2003 Ford Taurus that hit the woman about 6:20 p.m. He was traveling south on Ayers and was not injured.

The woman had crossed the street past the traffic light at Roosevelt Drive, outside a crosswalk, police said. The driver was not cited.

"Since she did not use a crosswalk, of course the motorist did not expect a pedestrian to be in the street there," Stowers said. "Our message to the public is to be mindful that people, animals or any kind of an obstacle can go in the roadway where you least expect it."

Stowers added that pedestrians should assume that at nighttime motorists can't see them and should take appropriate precautions.

"We want everyone to get to their destination safely," Stowers said. "This is a tragedy that we hate to work. Our thoughts are with everyone that's affected by this crash."

Distraught neighbors walking over from Roosevelt Drive screamed and wept as officers directed traffic. Two men who were relatives of the woman also were at the location talking with authorities. About 60 people gathered outside the La Armada apartments and Fiesta Latina, where police cordoned off the crash site and took care to shield the body from onlookers.